The present invention relates to an airbag provided preferably in a steering wheel of a motor vehicle for being inflated in case of an emergency such as a collision, and for protecting a human body.
In order to protect a passenger in case of an emergency such as the collision of a motor vehicle, various types of airbag apparatus such as an airbag apparatus for a driver's seat are employed. The airbag apparatus for the driver's seat includes an airbag formed by stitching peripheral edge portions of a front panel on the passenger side and a rear panel on the opposite side. The rear panel is provided with a port for engaging an inflator at a center thereof for receiving a distal end side of the inflator. A periphery of the port is mounted to a retainer by bolts, pins, or rivets. The rear panel is formed with a vent hole for releasing gas in the bag and absorbing an impact when the passenger on the driver's seat is displaced into the airbag.
In Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 1-311930 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 10-81191, an airbag including an inner panel (it is referred to as “inner gas bag” in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 1-311930) is provided so as to extend between an inflator port on the rear panel and the front panel, and so that an interior of the airbag is partitioned into a first chamber at a center and a second chamber extending in a periphery thereof. The inner gas bag is provided with a communication port for bringing the first chamber and the second chamber into communication with each other. When the inflator is activated, the first chamber is inflated first, and the second chamber is inflated successively.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an airbag whose interior is divided into a first chamber and a second chamber by an inner panel which is continued from a front panel in which the second chamber is quickly inflated upon inflation of the airbag.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention and the associated drawings.